Nicole's New Zealand News

Reason #8: The Food

2010-07-29T14:09:00.000+12:00

I just noticed there's no July post, and am therefore in danger of losing my link to Michael's page. As a result, this isn't the most highly edited work:

The food here is amazing. We live in Hawke's Bay, the fruit basket of New Zealand, and have access to really fresh produce all year long. Kiwis are in to eating seasonally; you can get foreign produce in the grocery stores, but I've seen almost no one actually buying it, with the exception of bananas. Admittedly, there isn't an abundance of great restaurants, but cooking at home is more rewarding than I ever found it in the U.S. My list of the BEST Kiwi food:

1. Pies. (the kind with meat and/veggies, not sweet!)
2. Butter (the richest, freshest stuff you've ever tasted)
3. Milk (the skim doesn't taste like water, and the full doesn't taste like pure fat!)
4. Eggs - if you've never had fresh eggs, you're missing out
5. Kiwifruit - we eat it almost every day
6. Pumpkins (the Kiwi generic for squash)
6. Whatever fruit is in season - right now, pretty much Kiwifruit and apples.

Reason #7: Rugby

2010-06-28T07:52:00.000+12:00

Anyone reading this probably knows I'm not a competitive athlete. I'm a slow cyclist, a terrible runner, and a sailor who hates racing. But as a New Zealander, I adore rugby. I may enjoy watching it even more than football (sorry, Peyton.) My favorite team is, of course, the All Blacks. Here are Nicole's Top Ten Reasons that All Blacks rugby is the best sport ever:

10. You have to perform to stay on the team: the roster changes every week.
9.   The clock never stops.
8.   No commercials.
7.   Coolest. Uniforms. Ever. (Unlike other national teams, a minimum of sponsor logos.)
6.   When you watch on TV, you can hear everything the ref says (not that I understand most of it...)
5.   Instant replay.
4.   The kicker actually plays the whole game (and Daniel Carter is amazing.)
3.   It's a gentleman's game... the ref calmly explains the rules, when necessary, to the captains.
2.   The boys wear shorts.
1.   The Haka.

New Zealand is hosting the Rugby World Cup in 2011. We'll be trying to get tickets to see the USA play Ireland on 9/11/2011.... can't wait!

Reason #6: Everything is Reversed

2010-05-14T11:33:00.002+12:00

In New Zealand, everything is backwards. Of course, New Zealanders don't think so. Case in point: when our Samsung fridge was delivered, the young bloke hooking it up had trouble turning it on. Finally, he figured out that he had to flip the switch up. His comment? "The switches in Japan must turn on when you flip them up. Huh. That's weird." (Note: this is the only Kiwi I've met who wouldn't know that Samsung is a Korean company; but this post isn't about their freaky geography prowess.) Light switches do indeed switch down to turn on, which is a never-ending source of amusement for me.

Other things are backwards as well:

Roads, obviously. In New Zealand, as in most other Commonwealth countries, we drive on the left. I actually like it, for some indefinable reason. Perhaps my love of English literature?

Drains. Nope. That one's a myth. But toilets here do seem to violently flush straight down. Newer toilets have 2 buttons... I'm never quite sure which to press.
Time. When we first heard "eleven half," we weren't sure if that meant 10:30 or 11:30. Since it was a lunch date, we went with the latter. Luckily, we were right.
Using the credit card machine at the grocery store. You have to wait for the cashier to tell you to swipe, then you swipe, choose your account, and enter your pin. Something about the order feels wrong, though it sounds the same as in the U.S. Nevertheless, I always do it wrong.
Pumping gas. You pump first, then pay. It's old-school U.S. There are also people to wash your windows (no tips, of course.)
At the end of the meal, even in a nice restaurant, you go up to pay at the counter. I think they will bring a check if you ask, but no one actually does. I'm guessing it's gauche to ask. Queues form just before the rugby game is going to start.
Prepositions seem to be reversed and used without articles. "Good on ya" and "in hospital" are popular phrases.
The nicest, most helpful people around work at the Post Shoppe.

Reason #5: Quiz Night

2010-05-05T14:14:00.005+12:00

While taking a break from stacking wood (quickly becoming my #1 reason NOT to move to NZ) I am pondering the fun that was quiz night at the Rose and Shamrock last night. While not a NZ phenomenon, quiz nights are incredibly well-attended here in Havelock North. The Rose and Shamrock is not a small pub, and it was packed full of people of all ages (over 18, of course.) We had to bring in the plastic chairs from the patio so that we could sit down. The teams with the most points win bar tabs, which would have been pretty darn cool. We all agreed to drink the tab immediately should we win.

Our team was Sarah, her partner Nick, our Irish friend Aoife, Michael and I. The categories for quiz night last night were:

1) Famous name changes
2) Plays and Playwrights
3) Monarchs
4) Geography
5) Sport
6) Music
7) Inventions
8) Trivia

Needless to say, Team Green did not win. There were some pretty obscure questions, and the music category consisted of the announcer playing a 70s disco song, and you had to list the artist who sang it.

My two best answers of the night were the ones my team voted me down on:

Longest ruling British monarch? Victoria, of course! But the queen's subjects at my table all thought it was Elizabeth I, so naturally I acquiesced to them. Why didn't they listen to the American?

The author of The Importance of Being Earnest? Oscar Wilde was my first answer. But Aoife insisted it wasn't him, and since he was an Irish bloke, I had to go with her.

Answers I almost got: which race started in 1903 and goes for over 2000 kilometers? I answered the Iditerod. As it turns out, the Iditerod didn't start until the 1970s, although its roots are older. The answer: The Tour de France!!! How did I miss that one???

And what did Colonel Schlick invent? I said the safety razor, which we amended to disposable safety razor. He actually invented the ELECTRIC razor.

Of course, at least I knew Monopoly was based on Atlantic City, which from the groans in the pub, was an answer few teams got right.

All in all, an entertaining evening. And I owe Aoife a beer.

Reason #4 - Our House

2010-04-23T17:26:00.002+12:00

A video of our new digs
Our house in New Zealand

Despite its quirks (no garage, really, really cold) I like the house we're renting in Havelock North. It's in a quiet neighborhood, I'm sharing no walls with neighbors, and it has a fig tree. I've had a good time setting it up and getting everything just so. There's nothing like moving across an ocean to get you to purge your stuff down to a manageable level... and since clutter is overpriced here, I'm not tempted to buy more!

Reason #3: Clotheslines

2010-03-27T14:49:00.000+13:00

Everyone here has a clothesline. (Except our Candian-American friends in Auckland, but they aren't real Kiwis, I guess.)

One appliance saleswoman was sort of talking us out of getting a dryer. She mocked a neighborhood in which she had lived in Australia because they wouldn't allow clotheslines. "They said it made us look like the third world or something. Imagine."

Kiwis hang their clothes to dry. Not because they have to. Not because dryers are outrageously expensive (though they are.) Because they can. And why not? The air is clean, the sun is extra-bright, and no one thinks you're poor or trashy for having a clothesline. It saves a few dollars, yes, and is good for the enviornment, but mostly, it's practical.

I have a fabulous clothesline. It's hung above the edge of our deck, so I don't have to reach up, and there's lots of room for big items like sheets to hang clear of the ground.

Due to the lack of a vent for a dryer, we bought a washer-dryer combo. So we have a clothes dryer, but I'm using it less and less. Why not hang stuff out on a sunny day? It's picturesque, It will make our clothes last longer, and Michael will learn to live with itchy jeans.

It's the Kiwi way.

NZ Move Reason #2: Tea

2010-03-08T14:19:00.000+13:00

Since my brief stint in Russia, I’ve missed the daily ritual of tea. I love tea. I drink it without sugar, sometimes with milk or lemon. Since the day we arrived, I’ve commented on a daily basis that the first thing we need to buy for our Kiwi house is an electric tea kettle.

Like their British relatives, Kiwis drink tea. At work, you don’t just have breaks; they are “tea breaks.” And, as Michael discovered you use the tea brink to drink tea. Employers provide tea, and people actually drink it.

Every hotel room has an electric tea kettle and a tea pot, and we were handed a small bottle of milk at check-in in Napier so that our tea would be properly fortified.

The best example: at a barbeque on Friday night, Michael commented to an Irish coworker that we don’t have electric tea kettles in the States. This turned into a conversation with the whole group about the inconceivability at our tea-kettle deficiency. They were incredulous when I told them Americans heat our water for tea on the stove. It was tantamount to announcing that Americans are barbarians. Perhaps the only thing more tragic in a Kiwi’s eyes would be warm beer.

I think I’ve convinced Michael that the tea kettle is a necessity…. we otherwise might be ostracized from Kiwi society.

Why did I move to NZ? Reason #1 Parks

2010-03-05T13:59:00.001+13:00

Reason #1: Parks

While it may not be my MAIN reason for moving to NZ, I think Kiwi values are well represented by parks.

This week, I've spent a lot of time in them. Today, I'm typing this blog from one.

Kiwis love their parks... so much that they have a plethora of names for them. While I have no official definitions to back up my descriptions, here are my observations:

A large wild park (think a national park in the U.S.) is called a Reserve. It may only be a square kilometer or two, but it's basically wildland, with lots of trails for tramping. And sheep, of course. There usually seem to be sheep involved. This morning, I spent a half hour admiring the Redwoods in the Te Mata domain. And our new home (once we move into it) has a reserve behind it.

A large city park (say Golden Gate Park) is a Domain. They appear to have all the amenities of any large urban park - playgrounds, sport areas, formal gardens, etc. I haven't found a Domain in Hawkes Bay just yet.

There are many plain old parks... you can hardly walk for ten minutes in any direction without running into one. I'm not talking about a big slightly-browned lawn with playground equipment and hoodlums, a la SoCal. I'm talking about expanses of grass surrounded by beautifully maicured flower gardens. There are monuments everywhere - WWI Gallipoli monuments being most popular. And, no matter what kind of park, there are PEOPLE in parks. Young people, old people, normal people just out enjoying hte day. The other day, I had to look hard to find an unoccuiped bench in a park midmorning. And there are plenty of benches. No bums sleeping on them, either.

Parks here are a joy. They are a safe haven. On an afternoon I'd be wasting walking around a mall in the O.C., I'm sitting on the grass in the middle of town looking at a 100-year-old fig tree. (I'd be sitting under it, but fig leaves are rather sturdy and hard when they fall on your head.)

Last Night of Hanukkah...

2008-12-29T14:27:00.000+13:00

Hanukkah presents for 2008: (all from Michael)

Multi-colored pearl necklace
Coldplay CD
Garmin for my bike
Garmin adapters so I can put it on 2 bikes
Cute bubble bike jersey
Flowered bike socks to match the cute jersey
Scale that measures BMI, body fat, etc
Two inner tubes for my bike tires

Michael received from me...
A Dell mini
Bike tights
Bike shoe covers
Black T Shirts from the Gap
A reversible belt
Season 3 of Arrested Development (a Hanukkah tradition)
An autographed Steve Poltz CD
And something else I can't remember at the moment.... darnit

A post just for Sarah

2008-12-09T02:49:00.001+13:00

I'm sure it is a surprise to none that Michael is once again posting disinformation about Rainbow on his site. However, since Sarah asked, here's a picture of a quilt. This is a small one I made for a girl last year. It's a memory quilt... each square is from a different girl in the Assembly.

Thanksgiving Menu

2008-11-28T06:45:00.000+13:00

Beautiful Browned Turkey
Nicole's Evil Stuffing
Bouteille Call Cranberry Chutney
Creamy Mashed Potatoes
Michael's Corn
Green Beans with Shallot Crisps and Walnuts
Gorgeous Fall Salad
Hot Buttered Dinner Rolls
Baked Apples and Sweet Potatoes
Steal-the-Peeler-from-Big-Sister Apple Pie
Dueling Pumpkin Pies a la Jenny

Flying!

2008-08-05T16:40:00.000+12:00

On Saturday, our friend Marty took us for a flight on his beautiful airplane. We went for Catalina for lunch and a hike, and then flew back to the OC. I flew on the way back, right over the Huntington Beach pier.

This was far less scary than I expected. In fact, I liked it way better than flying commercial. You can read more about it at Michael's site.

Platy McFatty, Rest In Peace

2008-07-30T16:03:00.000+12:00

I am sorry to report the loss of Ms. Platy McFatty this evening.

Her death came not long after her return from fat camp, where she successfully transformed from a morbidly obese fish into a moderately overweight yet stunning lady. Although she died the same day as the earthquake, her death is believed to be unrelated. The family declined an autopsy, wanting to remember her as the happy fish she was.

The Clown Loach Army has declined comment. Mr. Plecostomus said, "she was pretty nice, but shouldn't have eaten all the clown loach food. She should have left the stealing of their food to me."

She was the mother of ten (possibly more) and only ate one of her offspring (that we know of.) Eight of her offspring preceded her into the great beyond. She loved red flakes and carnivore pellets. She was afraid of nothing and no one, and dominated the tank since her arrival.

Platy McFatty is survived by her daughters Zippy and Zippy Jr., and her dear friend Miss Skinny. Private funeral services were held in the upstairs lou.

The Zippy sisters request that in lieu of flowers, mourners send snails for the clown loaches. If the Army is distracted, its pellets will be easier to steal.

Not the wisdom teeth!

2008-07-27T13:34:00.001+12:00

They apparently have to come out. In my poorly scanned X-Ray, above, you can see that my bottom wisdom teeth are growing sideways into my other teeth. Those regular teeth have old, old fillings that are crumbling, and therefore have to be capped. Therefore, my poor wisdom teeth must go.

As my friend Tom pointed out, I can't afford to lose any wisdom.

My awesome day

2008-07-18T16:11:00.000+12:00

Today, I had the honor of meeting Professor Francisco Jiménez . He is the author of several autobiographical works detailing his experiences as an immigrant child of migrant farm workers in California in the 1950s. Jiménez , inspired and helped by teachers, attended Santa Clara University despite crushing poverty, went on to attain graduate degrees at other prestigious universities, and today is a teacher at SCU.

His works inspires kids to believe that change is possible in their lives if they work hard and are willing to reach for futures that sometimes seem impossible.

I've met other authors before, but it was inspirational to see Jiménez speak. He was addressing a small class of English language learners from all over the world who are attending San Jose City College. The students had very limited English skills, but he made them feel comfortable and encouraged them to ask questions. He was gentle and inspiring, and very gracious. He expressed over and over again how much he owed to his teachers, and thanked our little group from the OC for doing what we do.

It was worth the negativity of the annoying people at Ethics Camp this year just to have today's experience. (They don't know where we disappeared to for an hour and a half today! Ditching is fun.)

Jiménez's inscription in my copy of The Circuit, which he was kind enough to sign:

"To Nicole -

With respect, gratitude and admiration."

How cool is that?

Another Post?

2008-07-17T12:00:00.000+12:00

I know. It's amazing.

I'm back at Santa Clara University at Ethics Camp. Truly pathetic that I've posted only once since the last Ethics Camp. Today we were asked to think about what effort we could make to change something in our lives. I'm resolving to put more effort into blogging.

Of course, this might just be me maintaining the Rainbow blog, which I also haven't been doing. In my defense, Michael spends a lot of time in our computer playing poker, so I really can't be blamed. And work blocks blogspot, so that's another way I can't waste time there.

But today was a good day, professionally. I just presented some of my brilliant teaching ideas to alternative ed teachers from all over the state. Although they had a plethora of reasons why they couldn't possibly do what I do (none of them, oddly enough, an honest "I'm too lazy") they were deeply impressed by my stunning classroom activities. This is my favorite. It's an illustrated word wall in the shape of a flag. Obviously. I won't bore all of you with the the teacher-y reasons one must have a word wall as part of one's teaching strategy. I just think it looks cool. :)

Negative people are irritating. I love ethics camp. It's re-energizing and enlightening and soothing. It's a chance to get away from the classroom for a week and be with other professionals who care about students. However, there's always a group of people who are forced to come, and choose to see the week as an assignment rather than a privilege. Why can't they just sit back and enjoy themselves? Why must they criticize and spew their negative attitudes over everyone? They're bringing me down.

Tour de Cure 2008!!!

2008-02-19T08:19:00.000+13:00

Michael and I are riding in the Tour de Cure again! Woo-hoo!

We're quite excited as always to be helping to raise money for the American Diabetes Association. This disease adversely affects the lives of millions of people every year, including members of our own family. We hope that our efforts make an important contribution to finding a cure.

Please support me by going to my Long Beach Tour de Cure page and making a donation. Or, if you prefer, visit my Napa page and support those Northeners. Every contribution, no matter how small, is greatly appreciated.

I'm also looking forward to raising more money than Michael for the fourth year in a row!

Ethics Camp

2007-07-10T12:05:00.000+12:00

I'm spending a fun-filled week at Santa Clara University at Ethics Camp. This is a teacher thing, and most of you won't be fascinated by details, so I won't give you any.

For those of you who are wondering "what is Santa Clara University?" it's billed as the oldest-operating college in California set on the grounds of the 5th of the famous California missions. However, being a University of the Pacific alumna and former campus tour guide, I am fully aware the UOP was chartered first. Also, perusing SCU's website, I noticed that it was actually a prep school in 1851, not a college. Therefore, I think UOP wins. And it has a better website.

You can't beat Santa Clara for beauty, though. I must admit, it is a gorgeously tended campus full of gardens and lush lawns. However, as I thought when I was a 17-year-old picking a college, it's a bit sterile. You might be stoned if you picked a flower or trampled a blade of grass.

Graduation!!!

2007-06-23T11:02:00.000+12:00

Graduation was today!
For the first time, it was my students graduating!
This is a picture of me with my wonderful graduates, my two favorite students -

Alberto and Darius.

Yes, I cut my hair.... here's me last night after it was done.
I don't look good because I had been crying. Not about the hair, though.

....The crying is a subject for another post.

Yes, I have a personal trainer

2007-05-23T13:48:00.000+12:00

Her name is Gina.

This is Gina training some guy who's much stronger than me. I do not look like him when I lift weights. I look much sillier.

For those of you who are unaware, I have lost almost 20 lbs in the last six months. This primarily involved eating less.

About three months ago, I decided I needed to exercise more to go with it. However, I hated running, wasn't biking enough, and eschewed all other forms of exercise. I still hate running, but am now financially obligated to exercise at least twice a week. And Gina's fun. Perhaps my legs will make it up those Tuscany hills in September.

I really need to get in shape because I'm doing something insane this summer.

I'm becoming a middle school teacher.

"Middle school is great," many teachers say. Jenny loved middle school. Tricia would love to teach it someday. However, think 12-14 year olds with raging hormones who have been expelled from their regular middle school. That will be my world.

I will need much energy.

Another Tour de Cure successfully completed...

2007-05-21T15:23:00.000+12:00

107 km (approximately 66 miles) in a little under 5 hours. That includes 7 stops, which is excessive for us.

Wardrobe adjustment
The nicest restroom on the trip
Peanut butter desperately needed after Newport Coast
Ferry crossing
Flat tire immediately after getting off the ferry
Someone else's flat tire 4 miles later
Exhaustion Stop for more peanut butter

Still, I managed to get the least geeky Tour picture yet at the end.

There's one on Michael's site that's much better. I had to order a different one than him. There's also a photo of me with a celebrity.

All in all, a good day. I raised more money than last year, thanks to my very generous friends. If any of you feel like helping out the American Diabetes Association a little further, I'm only $72 away from a really cute jersey. Of course, that shouldn't be my motivation.

How I managed to gain a lb while biking that far, I can't imagine. Must have been the peanut butter.

I Am Pure Evil

2007-05-15T15:29:00.000+12:00

C'mon... is this really a suprise?

You are Pure Evil

How Evil Are You?

Who says there aren't freaks in Newport?

2007-05-11T16:23:00.000+12:00

In the parking lot of my condo, an old lady with an adorable cocker spaniel... "You're driving me crazy. Be careful or it's off to animal research for you."

Around the corner, in the middle of the street, a guy running full speed down the street, dribbling a basketball.

We went all the way to Red Bluff for my cousin Stacy's wedding last weekend. Here's a picture of her with her eyes closed. Unfortunately, the only picture I took.

My sisters and I wore brown. Glamor says that sunglasses as headband is a "do," which makes me cooler than them. Tricia, you were right, though: drama eyes better than bold lips. Jenny and I look a little hooker.

The wedding was pretty standard Red Bluff. Only I really missed the country band.

We also went to Solvang, which was lots of fun. Michael's site has more info on that.

White People Have Feelings, Too

2007-03-22T17:58:00.000+12:00

Why is it that my white friends go out of their way to be politically correct, but non-whites I know, of all race and creed, find it perfectly acceptable to make derogatory comments about white people?

I know as a race we haven't had the best modern history in our treatment of minorities, but does that mean we as individuals should be constantly abused?

My students complain about racism, and then make rude comments about Asian drivers.

At least once a day I hear the phrase, "it's because you're white."

My non-white friends seem to mention race in every conversation. Is that what defines us? And if so, why do they want to be friends with me?

A comment made months ago about a snack I served that still annoys me: "This is so white."
Are white people the only people who eat cheese? I carefully went to the cheese store and selected a beautiful, perfectly balanced selection of cheeses, nuts, and fruit (from all over the world, by the way), sliced and arranged with care and served with a specific lovely wine, and the only comment I get is "this is so white?" I didn't even know the race of the strangers I was going to be having in my home ahead of time! Only white people like cheese? This is news to me!

However, most of my friends are not white, and none of them understand why I'm upset about these kinds of things. I guess I'm lucky I married a white guy, who gets this.

I've got a roof over my head..."

2007-03-06T17:58:00.000+13:00

New bed set up and the bedroom is slowly coming together... still waiting on some linen.

What do you guys think: canopy or no canopy?

Very Sad Bed Day

2007-03-04T17:35:00.000+13:00

Last week, I bought a new bed from Crate and Barrel. I love this bed. Unfortunately, it would not fit up our stairs. The 82" posts are permanently attached to the foot board and headboard. The delivery guys tried 4 different ways of getting it up, but it just wouldn't go. I applaud their efforts. I still recommend Crate and Barrel furniture. However, I'm very sad that we will be spending another night with the mattress on the floor. (Of course, today we have a foundation, because that WAS delivered from Sit 'n Sleep.)

Tonight I went Internet surfing and then out to investigate. Cost Plus's bed (below) is almost as cute, and comes in pieces. Luckily, I'm good at putting furniture together! My dad is going to help me pick it up tomorrow. Hopefully, by tomorrow night, we'll have a bed. Wish me luck!

Tour de Cure!!!

2007-02-25T08:14:00.000+13:00

Michael and I are riding in the Tour de Cure again! Woo-hoo!

We're quite excited as always to be helping to raise money for the American Diabetes Association. This disease adversely affects the lives of millions of people every year, including members of our own family. We hope that our efforts make an important contribution to finding a cure.

Please support me by going to my Tour de Cure page and making a donation. Every contribution, no matter how small, is greatly appreciated.

I'm also looking forward to raising more money than Michael for the third year in a row!

Sharing Isn't Always Caring

2007-02-16T13:02:00.000+13:00

I have long wondered what prompts the teenagers in my life to share everything. You know, food, drinks, utensils, clothing, makeup, chap stick, other icky stuff that I wish I didn't know about...

Then I look around at moms of young children who do nothing but "share" with their kids.

At some point very early on, I think we need to teach our children that sharing personal items is not OK. Sometime after nursing but before preschool. If kids are taught that it's OK to share drinks and food and chap stick with mommy, how will they know it's bad to share the juice box with Johnny at school?

I don't think kids differentiate between family and outsiders until a very mature age. When I object to my teenage students sharing, they say things like "it's OK... we share everything at my house." Then they are surprised when they catch everything from colds to cold sores from their friends.

Teach them early. Some things are just personal.

Happy Valentine's Day

2007-02-15T14:32:00.000+13:00

I was busy this morning doing The World's Longest Sudoku Puzzle, so I was a little late getting to school this morning. I was met at the door by an early-bird student, who demanded to know what I "got" for Valentine's Day.

I told her that I wouldn't get anything until this evening. Now I'm not sure what I will tell her.

Michael sent me a case of Bouteille Call, a syrah port from Bonny Doon. When I went to pick up the box (since UPS never delivers when I'm home) I was shocked by its size. I must have asked the poor UPS guy three times if he was sure it was my box, since we usually get wines in twos. When opened, the wine was beautifully individually wrapped in red tissue paper. It's sort of like flowers. They both come in dozens.

The wine isn't dreadful swill, even if it isn't the perfect port. Expect dessert wine if we come to your house. I bought Michael port glasses to go with it, along with a pair of lovely martini glasses he's been admiring.

The dilemma? What to tell my students I got for V-Day... neither the wine nor its name is terribly appropriate classroom conversation. :)

Blog Intervention

2007-02-14T14:57:00.000+13:00

Tate staged a blog intervention for me on Saturday. Funny, I thought we had driven all the way to Napa to see our friends. However, I suppose he has inspired me to update.

Micheal and I did go to SF this weekend. I forgot the camera, so no pics this time. On Napa, we saw the Lindens and did a little bit of wine tasting. On Sunday, we went bed shopping. We looked at this captain's bed, which we had considered ordering online. I'm glad we didn't, because it was surprisingly flimsy. We saw other beds, but none had the necessary requirements. It is surprisingly complicated to buy a bed for a TempurPedic mattress that doesn't invalidate the warranty.

On Sunday night, we had dinner with the Rosens at Bob's Steak & Chop House. The steak was great, but I found it a little disturbing that all of our plates looked identical, even though we had ordered different steaks. They all had steak, a carrot, and our potato choice. Not very imaginative. Our meals pretty much looked like the ones on their website.

On Monday, we met the Lindens again for breakfast at Home Plate. The scones are very yummy. We also wandered around the Ferry Terminal, which is now a whole bunch of upscale stores. The cheese store is amazing.

I miss cheese, but I've lost 14 lbs so far. That's almost worth the cheese deprivation.

Codeine is evil

2007-01-31T15:13:00.000+13:00

The worst cold I have ever had. The Dr. says it is probably bronchitis. Fever for days. She prescribed Robitussin with codeine to stop the cough long enough to let me sleep. I took the minimum dose last night, and I still haven't recovered from it. Loopy. I was actually seeing things this morning. Now I'm just dizzy and weak.

But the cough is much better...

Pigs, pigs, and more pigs

2007-01-18T13:38:00.000+13:00

Jessica says I stay at home all day! As a testimonial to what I did over my Christmas vacation, I submit the following pictures:

On the right is the timeline for the novel A Lesson Before Dying, which I'm now reading with my class. You can see that my students wrote what has happened during the first few chapters on the jailbars.

On the left is my word wall. There are precisely 100 pigs on the wall. Over them, my students are putting the red "no" signs, which have the daily vocabulary words on them. This is significant because the main character, "Jefferson" (the guy in jail) has a defense attorney who calls him a hog in his closing argument to get him out of the electric chair. It doesn't work, so the book is about the community proving to Jefferson that he is a man and not an animal before he dies. Hence the pigs slowly disappear each day behind vocabulary. It isn't subtle, but I think the students are getting the point.

Admittedly, my Rainbow girls cut out all the pigs and the no circles, and drew the guy behind the bars, but I supervised and made lots of copies and came up with the ideas! That counts, right? Somewhere I have pics of the girls doing the work, but my camera's not here right now. Special thanks to Colet and Nicole for the lovely colored pencil artistry and pig layout. Luckily, they probably don't read my blog!

The Rainbow girls all claimed to love my classroom, and wished it was theirs. They're probably just being nice, but at least my room isn't boring!

I think I must have one.

2007-01-11T20:00:00.000+13:00

I know.

I'm a terrible blogger.

I will soon add blogging to my daily routine.

I also think that feeding the fish would be easier if I had one of these... I could feed them during my daily swish and swipe. It would be adorable in the downstairs nautical bathroom.

I have Tenure!!!!

2006-10-28T12:28:00.000+13:00

Totally don't believe in tenure for teachers. I think it's bad for kids, professional development, and society in general.

Still, it's a pretty cool thing to have!

:)

Bicycling a Marathon

2006-10-17T12:29:00.000+13:00

Wow! Didn't even realize it's been a month since I blogged. Too busy doing stuff that's not that interesting.... here goes.

You can hear about Michael's marathon woes at his site. Mine are different.

After two weeks of constant nagging from Tricia, I signed up to ride the Long Beach marathon. This entails arriving by the 6 am start and bicycling the 26.2 mile course ahead of the runners. Admittedly, bicycling is much easier than running, although it is challenging to navigate through thousands of cyclists who have no idea what they're doing.

I didn't find Tricia and her friends at the start. After a mostly cut-off phone call, I decided they must be in front of me. I spent the first 18 miles spinning at about 18 mph, pretty good for me. Then I decided I was never going to catch up and slowed down a bit. Once I made that decision, I came around a corner and there was Tricia waiting for me. We rode the last few miles and chatted. She gave me a half-eaten granola bar when I wanted to stop and eat, and I managed to finish in just under 2 hours. Not terrible, when you consider I had to brake for:

1) The 5 mile marker in the middle of the bike path.

2) A guy on a mountain bike weaving in front of me as I was going under a low-hanging tree branch.

3) The beach cruiser chick who said "on my left? There's only sand on my left."

4) 3 guys on weird stand-up trike things. Definately not 'bicycles.'

5) A couple on a Trek tandem who had to stop and walk around a wide corner that my captain could have made easily.

Tricia looked cute at the finish. Here's her picture. I have a medal just like hers, but it wouldn't fit over my helmet, and it seemed silly to take a picture without it!

Afterward, I entertained myself by talking to the AIDS Life Cycle folks (Tricia will hit you up for donations soon.), figuring out where Michael had left the car, watching the people stagger into the race festival, and hanging out at mile 26 for an hour waiting for Michael.

I was very nervous waiting for Michael. I knew he wasn't feeling great, and when he didn't come in as he usually does like clockwork at 4 hours, I started to wonder about all the awful things that might have happened to him somewhere on the course. Luckily, he survived, and was only a little sick on the 90-minute wait to get out of Long Beach. I can't wait for the next, nice, local OC Marathon, where I get to drop him off and enjoy the next 4 hours doing other stuff!

Labor Day Acrostic

2006-09-10T06:57:00.000+12:00

Micheal, Jessica, Ben and I biked to San Diego last weekend. Michael and I also biked back. Here's a picture of Jessica. She's smiling despite the giant hill she can see approaching.

Last Tuesday, my class wrote acrostic poems about what they did on Labor Day weekend.

Here was mine (pretty much; I'm not sure I remember it accurately):

Bicycling to San Diego and back
Is a truly Laborious weekend.
Cherry-red nose under the blistering sun.
Yearning for fish tacos.
Coasting gratefully down Torrey Pines.
Lunging painfully up the inclines.
"It's not about the bike"
Ninety-one miles times two.
Greatness is in overcoming the agony.

My Day Was Worse Than Yours

2006-08-26T11:39:00.000+12:00

First of all, a mileage update:

Tandem Mileage on Wednesday night: Approximately 21 miles. Our light interferes with our computer.

Yesterday, one of the teachers at our site went to have a conference with our principal. In the course of the conference, said teacher quit. As in, she went home and isn't planning to come back. Shock. Didn't sleep last night.

The other teacher and I decided not to tell the kids until Monday, by which time we hope to know what's going to happen to their class, etc. Plan derailed. The teacher who quit called one of her students and told the student she was fired. Not true. The teacher thought she was going to be fired, so she quit on the spot.

Our wonderful Assistant Principal talked to the class, but they are in complete denial. They don't believe she would, in their words, "abandon" them like that. They are convinced everyone else is lying to them. When I told my own class, their first question was "Is it because of us, Nicole?" Ouch. I didn't cry, but I came close.

These kids already have abandonment issues, and this is the third teacher to leave the site this year. Of course, the other two gave notice and made leaving as positive experience as they could.

I feel like I'm in mourning. I don't know if I believe in the five stages of grief, but if they exist, I'm still in the anger phase. Her students deserved better.

Mileage Update

2006-08-23T17:04:00.000+12:00

I rode alongside Michael as he ran today. I don't know if the mileage really counts, since I was going pretty slowly, but I did put it in my lowest gear and spun as much as possible.

Felt Mileage: 10 mi

Total bike miles this week: 30.1 miles

Yet Another Way to be Injured on a Bike

2006-08-22T15:31:00.000+12:00

Last night, Michael and I went for a spin with Jessica, who just bought a new bike. At first, we were going really slow into the wind... about 6 mph... so as not to lose Jessica. On the way back, with a tailwind, we started moving at a more respectable speed... 16 to 20 mph.

Suddenly, I feel a rock hit my cheeckbone! Jessica screamed behind me, and I thought she was hit, too! It turned out she saw me hit by some kind of rubber ball, probably from a group who were hitting balls with bats nearby on the beach. My eye is still swollen, but not bruised, which is good. Explaining a black eye to the juvenille delinquents is not easy. (Don't ask me how I know.)

On the way back, we were taunted by a couple on beach cruisers, who were very fast. The chick was probably going 20 on her cruiser. So Mike and I had to kick it up, leaving Jessica in our dust. She didn't see a corner on the beach path, and drove into the sand. Her knee was very bloody, and she's now worried abou scars and future marriage prospects. Crazy, huh? Everyone knows guys dig girls with nice... umm... figures. Bicycling = Fit = Jessica. :)

Anyway, Michael told me for the first time to "just relax, don't pedal." It's hard not to pedal, so that didn't last long. But my eyes were teary all the way home.

Sunday tandem mileage: 20.1 mi

My hair is real!

2006-08-15T01:34:00.000+12:00

On Saturday, a lady in Jamba Juice asked me if my hair was "all mine, or if they weaved stuff into it." I was wearing it in braids... can you braid a weave? Who knows. Then she kept pointing it out to people while we were waiting for our smoothies.

Yesterday: Performance Bike in Aliso Viejo via Irvine. Home via Laguna.

Tandem mileage: 45 miles.

Ten Years?!?

2006-08-12T09:43:00.000+12:00

Can you believe we've been married ten years?
Happy Anniversary Dr. Lasko.

French and Swiss Food Delights!

2006-08-10T17:56:00.000+12:00

By fan demand, I must publish something about my recent food adventures.

Over the weekend, I attempted tart flambe for the first time. This was the best food in France! It came out pretty well. This is basically pizza with a very thin crust and pricy French cheese. I burnt it around the edges a little... used to making regular pizzas. Thanks to Bristol Farms for actually carrying both fromage blanc and creme.... oh, yeah, cr eme fraiche. That, of course, is fake bacon.

On Tuesday, our fondue pot arrived in the mail. Immediately, I rushed out to buy the proper cheeses, and invited Tricia and Jessica over for the evening. This recipe's pretty close to what I made, and was almost as good as the fondue in Switzerland. I didn't use mustard, though. Sorry, no pics... I forgot to take them during all the fondue excitement. I finished the "meal" with peaches flambe over ice cream. Lighting things on fire is never a bad thing. :)

We played poker. Tricia won. It took a long time.

Spontaneous food and drink is fun. I should get more friends.

Mileage Log

2006-08-06T08:26:00.000+12:00

Tandem mileage today: 53.43 miles

Went with the Bike Club of Irvine this morning. We biked there and did the medium ride. We're a little fast for the medium group, but the long rides are usually all hills. Decided today, though, that flat is sort of boring. Lots of pedaling with no reward. Maybe next week we'll try the long.

Overcommitted?

2006-08-05T12:51:00.000+12:00

Assuming I don't blow the interview, I'm going to be my area's Character Based Literacy Fellow this coming year. This involves a lot of hand-holding and keeping track of books. I have Chandi to blame for leaving me.

And then my AP calls yesterday to ask if I can be the math person for my site. More hand-holding and being all positive and happy about teaching math instead of telling kids to learn it on their own.
Between the two, I'll make an extra $2350 next year. Woo hoo!

I'm waiting for a job I'm actually qualified for... perhaps something in history?

As Promised... a Picture of my Dragon

2006-08-01T12:54:00.000+12:00

One of my favorite people in the whole world, my fellow teacher Chandi, is leaving our school and moving up to Santa Cruz. As happy as I am for her, I'm as devastated as our students, and will miss her greatly.

One of the things Chandi has done for me is taken many pictures of the gorgeous stuff I do in my room. My kids say it looks like an elementary school room, but secretly they like my "artwork." Since Chandi's leaving, I have to start taking pictures myself. My word wall, which is simply a giant wall of vocabulary words, is my favorite ongoing project. We're about to start the book Dragonwings, so this month's word wall will be a giant Chinese dragon. Each word is a scale, so by the end of the book, he will be very large. Here's his beginning, with the theme of the novel "Integrity Requires Wholeness" as the first three words.

"Dragon" in butcher paper and oil pastel

I did ride to work today. Headwinds both ways, due to the typical OC windshift. It made the ride back about 1/3 slower than the ride there. And if you ride the Sant a Ana River Bike Trail, you should know that it's blocked by construction at Warner... you have to take a street detour.

Today's mileage: 29.437

July's: 69.437 in Orange County
About 250? in Germany and France (At some point, I'll add up the routesheets.

My Felt's odometer: 138.41.. how sad is that?

Back to bicycling...

2006-07-31T13:37:00.000+12:00

It only took us about 3 hours to put the bike together today. Not a great time, but it's really clean.

We biked to Dana Point... that's about 40 miles round trip. In Europe, people do not drive Escalades. That was a nice thing. An Escalade on PCH in Laguna Beach is not a pretty sight from 18 inches away.

Mileage this week: 40 miles

I'm all packed for commuting tomorrow.

Also tomorrow: a picture of my Word Wall dragon.

Zurich, Lucern, the Black Forest, and Alsace!

2006-07-29T10:49:00.000+12:00

Late Monday night, we returned from an incredible experience with Santana Tandems in Europe.

We flew into Zurich, traveled to Lucerne, which is possibly my favorite city, and then went to the highest point in the Black Forest, where we put our bike together and started our cycling adventure.

My heartfelt thanks to Bill and Jan McCready from Santana, who put together these amazing trips. Here's a picture... Bill doesn't always look that wacky.

You can see all of our photos from the trip, along with Michael's comments, at Snapfish.

Two other people who made the trip fabulous were Tate and Sarah. We bonded as two of the younger couples. Tate had the most interesting title in the "face book" that Jan put together to help us get to know each other:thing namer. He actually runs his own branding company, which sounds much more impressive, but not as funny. Sarah has a fascinating job working for the government. I'm not being facetious. I do think it's fascinating. I already miss Sarah and Tate. Here is one of our many pictures of them. Happy Birthday, Sarah!

As Tate pointed out, I live my life "pratfall to pratfall." I had only two on this trip. First, I somehow contracted pinkeye. (Lovely thought, huh?) Luckily, there was an opthamologist on the trip who travels with a bag of drugs, so it didn't ruin my trip! Thanks, Ken (seen here with his lovely wife, Susan)!

On the second day of cycling, we had dinner in a 500-year-old barn. After much dancing and weird-hat-wearing, I fell down the stairs. I suffered through the rest of the trip with a very ugly bruise on my posterior. No, there will be no picture. Another doctor on the trip was able to assure I wouldn't die from the scary bruise, and it didn't interfere with bicycling, so the riding went on! Dr. Patricia is on the right with her fellow bridge players! Thanks, Patricia!

Finally... here's a picture of Michael and I at the Maginot Line, on an incredibly hot day in France. Gotta love those bike clothes!

You can visit Michael's site for other observations... I'll write more when I've had time to get my thoughts together.

The Site That Changed My Life

2006-06-24T11:18:00.000+12:00

I know... I'm in big trouble! Since I've been threatened with an unauthorized update, I figured I'd better post.

Much has happened, but you can visit Michael's site to find all of that out. This is report card weekend for me, so I don't have much time to blog, but I'll let you know the basics.

First of all, ACCESS report cards are not like regular report cards. First, you have to determine which classes each individual student has earned credits in, and how many credits in each. For example, Johnny may have completed 5 credits of English, 2 of World History, 3 of math, 2.5 of science, 7 of PE and 1 of health. This takes a long time. Then you have to complete a course contract for each class. Then you have to do the actual report card. Then you have to create new course contracts for the next quarter. Finally, you have to sign everything, calculate his current number of credits, and make a bejillion copies. This takes about 1/2 hour per student (if I'm on a roll). I only have 17 more students to go!

We went on a lovely vacation. There was much bicycling and visiting. I learned that my nephew Yali is obsessed by Thomas the train engine. Here's a picture of him knocking down the tower he insisted I build so he could knock it down with a cable car. I'm behind the flash. We bought him a cable car after riding the cable cars quite a bit in San Francisco. Here's me hanging from one.

About a month ago, my sister-in-law Stephanie sent me some links to house cleaning sites. At first I thought that was weird, but her email changed my life! Really! It is amazing how much happier a clean house can make you! See how happy Steph and Clive are?

If you are ever frustrated, annoyed, or depressed by your home, you must visit the FlyLady. At first, it all seems really hokey, but beneath the sappy platitudes is a system that works. Michael can attest to this, even though I've fallen off the wagon this week. Report cards and all. But the house looks good again, and it only took me about an hour!

We are having a party on the First of July to celebrate the Fourth of July. It's a wine tasting party, but we're also having mucho food. If you haven't been invited, it's because you're underage or pregnant and/or have a newborn and live really far away. Or I just don't like you all that much. If you want an evite, let me know. If I like you I'll send you one.

OK... back to house cleaning. I have to spend my whole Saturday doing report cards, so the house must be clean today. Someday, hopefully next week, I'll be back on the bike. I twisted my ankle on Wednesday night, so couldn't ride today as planned. Mileage reports soon.

Not Shirking... Really!

2006-04-06T12:50:00.000+12:00

I know... no update recently. But I have reasons!

After my fall, I was out of comission for a few days. My knee is still purple!
Lots of rain the past 2 weeks... I'm not THAT dedicated!
Parent-teacher conferences all this week. It really isn't safe to bike the Santa Ana riverbed after dark.

So, next week, after a couple of days out of town, I'll be back on the bike. That's important, because I'm riding in the Tour de Cure for Diabetes on May 20, and definately need to get ready. If you haven't already contributed, please visit my Tour de Cure page. See my inagural post for a picture from last year's ride.

However, I've kept busy. Last weekend, Michael and I cleaned up our beaches. I've adopted a section near 45th St. that I'm supposed to clean up once a month. Isn't this a great sign?

Usually people offer us drinks or money public accolades for cleaning up the beach, but this time, the minute I step on the beach, I hear:

Old Lady in a beach house with drink in hand: "Excuse me, miss! I called about that seal two days ago!"

Me (having no idea there were seals in Southern CA): "I'm a volunteer, ma'am."

Old Lady: "Well, can't you do something?"

Me: "I can call animal control."

Old Lady: "Is there someone else you can call?"

Me: "Yes, but they won't be there on a Sunday."

Old Lady: "It's been there for two days."

Me: "I'll certainly call animal control when I get home."

Old Lady: "Hmph."

I did call animal control, who already knew and said they'd take care of it on Monday. The poor sea lion was definately dead for a long time.

Funny responses Michael and I came up with after the fact: "It won't fit in my bucket." "The proper response when someone is picking up trash in front of your house is 'thank you.'"

Finally, if you're in Garden Grove on Friday evening between 4 and 7, drop by Century Day School for our very first ever Open House. The kids voted to serve buffalo wings, cookies, and popcorn, so it should be interesting.

bruised

2006-03-23T13:32:00.000+12:00

Splotchy purple knee
Cold ice yet pain won't subside
Hungry for hot soup.

The second most embarrassing place to fall over...

2006-03-23T12:15:00.000+12:00

So today I bike 26.210 miles, and fall over across the street from my house, trying to push that stupid bike cross button. I hate those buttons. *sigh*

The most embarrassing place would be in front of school, with kids watching. That would be way worse. I haven't done that yet, at least.

Today's Stats
26.213 mi
2:15 hrs

This Week
52.952 mi
4:47:35 hrs

March
78.887 mi
7:32:35 hrs

This is my blog

2006-03-21T12:54:00.000+12:00

If you don't know already, I like to bicycle. I have many bicycles. My favorite is our Santana Noventa. That's my husband Michael and I riding it at the Tour de Cure for diabetes.

All the cool people in Newport Beach have beach cruisers. I used to have a gorgeous blue Nirve Sunflower, but it was stolen. I replaced it with a beautiful Island Flower. Mine has a hand-painted yellow basket, that everyone admires.

After many months of talking about how I wanted to commute to work, I finally took my husband Michael's new Schwinn. This was fun, except the short13.38 mile ride killed my butt, shoulders, neck, and hips. Knowing it would take me hours to get there on my beach cruiser, and that I'd look silly alone on a tandem, I started shopping for a bike of my very own.

So, last weekend, after much shopping and consideration, I bought my very adorable Felt SR 91. It's black and yellow, as pictured. And BIG. I have very long legs... a 34 inch inseam, actually. This bike is a 56; way too big for anyone else to ride. But that's OK; I love it anyway.

Which brings me to the purpose of my blog. Since I now have the goal of riding to work 3 times a week, I figured I should have some kind of public record to keep me from shirking. So here goes.

Monday 3/13/06: 25.935 mi Odometer 25.935 mi 2:45 pedaling time

Monday 3/20/06: 26.739 mi Odometer 52.674 mi 2:28:34 pedaling time

Of course, the blog won't just be bicycling, but that's what it is today.